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BURNABY (NEWS1130) – About 100 people showed up to an open mic public meeting last night to give their suggestions on what upgrades they’d like to see at Burnaby General Hospital.

The 12-member Burnaby Hospital Community Consultation Committee, which includes locals, doctors, business owners and MLAs, has been hosting meetings around the city.

The Fraser Health Authority will handle all the public feedback and forward recommendations to the Ministry of Health.

The number one beef from people was there are not enough doctors and nurses, and those that are in the ER are overwhelmed and not properly equipped to handle the number of patients who go through the doors every day.

Former City Councillor Garth Evans’ father died of pneumonia at the hospital just three days after arriving. “We need a new hospital and we need it desperately. What we have is totally inadequate for our needs. It needs to be a priority and we need to get on this right away.”

Others would like the province to ensure better health care for seniors, while some suggest getting rid of paper records altogether.

Another popular suggestion is bringing in physicians from abroad. A Mexican doctor who works at Burnaby General Hospital says it’s a good idea, but there are too many restrictions.

“I spend four years to do what I was already doing 20 years ago or to spend eight years and become what I already are (sic)“

Burnaby General has the second-busiest emergency room in the province and it serves over 400,000 patients a year.

The facility’s reputation nosedived when earlier this year it was revealed 80 people died of C. Difficile over the last three years. Its own doctors then penned a letter saying the way the bacteria-related deaths have been handled bordered on negligence.